Not Just A Shocking Horror Tale: The Surgeon By Tess Gerritsen

By: Trina Allen

The Surgeon grabbed me and kept me reading. The suspense builds with every page. There are no dull moments, no holes in the plot. A serial killer is on the loose in Boston. He enters women’s bedroom windows at night, chloroforms them and takes away the very thing that makes them female. While his victim is awake, tied to her own bed with duct tape, he cuts her with a scalpel, removes her uterus and then slashes her throat. Death comes while the victim watches her own blood spray from her throat. This story is even more chilling than Silence of the Lambs because this killer tells the victim exactly how he will torture and then kill her. He draws death out over several hours while the victim waits alert and in pain.

What sets this novel apart from other thrillers is Gerritsen’s skill at bringing her characters to life. This is not just a shocking horror tale. The book opens from the killer’s point of view. The reader understands his thoughts and motives. The terror of a rape survivor, even years after her attack is brilliantly written into Dr. Catherine Cordell’s character, the only victim that lived through the surgeon’s attack two years before this current series of killings. Catharine is virtually unable to function, crippled by terror after it becomes obvious that the surgeon has made the killings personal and Catharine is his target. Through detectives Thomas Moore and Jane Rizzoli, the reader develops an intimate understanding of the intricacies of the Boston Homicide Unit. The heat of Boston is a symbol for the heat between Catherine and detective Moore.

I was pleasantly surprised by the very satisfying ending of this fantastic murder thriller. I highly recommend it for anyone who loves a thrilling read.

Trina Allen left a successful career as a middle school teacher to concentrate on her writing. She is a versatile writer, whose passion is fiction. Her fiction and nonfiction publications have appeared in various magazines such as Education Today, Science Scope, Dana Literary Society, and Thunder Sandwich. She is excited to be finishing Katharine Taylor and the Magic Quilt, a historical fantasy set in 1775 America, for children ages nine to thirteen. When she isn’t writing she is spending time with her husband, working out, playing chess or reading and watching thrillers. For more information or to view and discuss her writing visit http://www.trinaallen.com

Related to Book Reviews Guide

  • Finding Lilies - Book Review
  • Unraveling Fears: A Review of "Fears Unnamed"
  • "The Anvil Stone" author Kathleen Cunningham Guler: BOOK REVIEW
  • Hard Candy, Nobody Ever Flies over the Cuckoo’s Nest; Book Review
  • The Elf Prince - Book Review
  • "The Baron Son: Vade Mecum 7" Authors Davis, Patterson, & Patton: BOOK REVIEW
  • The Power of "Pet Sematary"
  • Caleb’s Wish
  • Bernard Cornwell - The Arthurian Trilogy
  • Review: The Deep Blue Alibi: A Solomon vs Lord Novel
  • Sorat and the Modern Day Evil
  • Dental Scrubs
  • Pirate Flags
  • Do You Remember: Retro Fashion and 70s Nostalgia
  • Review: Richard E. Sall’s Straightjacket
  • The Importance of Dealing with Quality Mattress Stores
  • Fancy Dress Grease And Others
  • Tips For Gift Buying
  • Tea and Chocolates; Book Review
  • Scrubs
  • Chef Hat - The History & Origin
  • Gilleland Poetry - Storoems and Poems - Review
  • Instead of Roses and Rings
  • "Goblins" Flops
  • Title: Casting Off
  • Leave a Reply

    You must be logged in to post a comment.